Image: idaho_mulies

At least 80 mule deer were killed to prevent the spread of CWD after they squeezed through gaps in a fence at a domestic elk ranch. (Photo by Tom Reichner)

Hunters with depredation tags and personnel with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) have killed more than 80 mule deer that found their way inside a captive elk facility in southeastern Idaho.

The department personnel who shot the deer donated the meat to the local food banks.

According to dnnews.com, the deer gained access to the facility through gaps in the fence. The ranch, which is managed by the Idaho Department of Agriculture, is not among the handful of domestic elk facilities in that part of the state currently under quarantine for CWD. But the facility still must test the animals for the disease because some of the elk were attained from the region in Alberta, Canada, where the disease is present.

Don’t Miss: University of Minnesota Faces Hefty Fines for Bald Eagle Killed by Wind Turbine

IDFG decided not to haze the deer back through the fence because it determined the risk that the animals were exposed to CWD was too high. The lethally removed deer are being tested for the disease, but so far, all have tested negative.

Captive elk facilities have recently faced scrutiny since a number of facilities have had animals to test positive for CWD. In addition, on several occasions, wild animals, such as deer, elk and moose, have gotten into the facilities and domestic animals have also escaped, increasing the risk of CWD spreading to wild animals.

“The evidence is mounting: domestic elk operations are posing an unacceptable risk to Idaho’s wild cervids and shifting the burden to hunters, wildlife managers, and the public,” said Jeff Abrams of the Idaho Conservation League. “Our Legislature desperately needs to revisit the elk farm laws they watered down only two years ago. We must all work together to strengthen biosecurity measures and enforcement of rules for these facilities.”